Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Baroness May of Maidenhead and Douglas Chapman

Wednesday 28th November 2018 Commons Chamber

[The Prime Minister]

I recognise my right hon. Friend’s concerns, and reassure her that we have been protecting police funding since 2015. We have enabled police forces further to increase funding through the council tax precept. This year, including council tax, there is an additional £460 million available to the police. However, I recognise the issue that my right hon. Friend has raised, and we will continue to ensure that the police have the resources they need to cut crime and keep our communities safe. There is also a role for chief constables and police and crime commissioners—as operational leaders and elected local representatives—to decide how best to deploy resources in order to manage and respond to individual crimes and local crime priorities.

[Douglas Chapman (Dunfermline and West Fife) (SNP)]

Q3. I know the Prime Minister is visiting Scotland today, and I hear that there is already great dancing in the streets. But like most Scots, I have been horrified by the arrogant, shambolic and non-inclusive way in which the Government have gone about the Brexit negotiations over two torturous years. What lessons has the Prime Minister learned so that we can have very simple, more productive and faster negotiations when we decide to dissolve the Act of Union?

[The Prime Minister]

The hon. Gentleman will be well aware of the vote that took place in 2014 and the desire of the Scottish people to remain in the United Kingdom. We have been working with the devolved Administrations at every stage throughout the negotiations. Indeed, the Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster has been having regular meetings with the devolved Administrations, and officials have also been meeting them, so we have ensured that the voice of the devolved Administrations has been heard in our negotiations.

Progress on EU Negotiations

Debate between Baroness May of Maidenhead and Douglas Chapman

Thursday 22nd November 2018 Commons Chamber

[The Prime Minister]

We have negotiated in good faith. As for holding people to their side of the bargain, my hon. Friend will see that action can be taken through legal measures if we were to believe that the European Union was no longer acting in good faith.

[Douglas Chapman (Dunfermline and West Fife) (SNP)]

I am looking at a statement from @ScotTories that said:

“Let me be absolutely clear: As we leave the EU, we need complete control over UK fishing. #NonNegotiatable”.

In a reply to the BBC, one hon. Member was asked whether the final deal would affect how they might vote in the meaningful vote, and they said that it would and that it would be very important. How will the Prime Minister explain the whole Scottish backstab to @ScotTories, because the deal is not about complete control, is it?

[The Prime Minister]

I suggest that the hon. Gentleman read Hansard to see the references I made to fishing and the commitments that this Government made to the fishing industry.

Oral Answers to Questions

Debate between Baroness May of Maidenhead and Douglas Chapman

Wednesday 25th April 2018 Commons Chamber

[The Prime Minister]

Obviously, this question of the fisheries is a matter that my hon. Friend and others have raised previously. Let me reassure him that, during the implementation period we have negotiated, the UK’s share of catch cannot be reduced. This safeguards the livelihoods of our fishing communities and, importantly, also delivers a smooth and orderly Brexit. There is also an obligation in the agreement on both sides to act in good faith throughout that implementation period, and any attempts by the EU to harm the UK fishing industry would obviously breach that obligation. Obviously, in December 2020, we will be negotiating fishing opportunities as a third country—as a fully independent coastal state—deciding who can have access to our waters and on what terms for the first time in more than 40 years.

[Douglas Chapman (Dunfermline and West Fife) (SNP)]

Q3. The Prime Minister will be aware that in my constituency we are putting the finishing touches to our second aircraft carrier the Prince of Wales, but as we near the end of that contract, more than 400 people in the Rosyth yard are now facing redundancy, with many more job losses in the pipeline. Will she visit my constituency to explain to the Rosyth workforce, face to face, why her Government intend to award a £1 billion shipbuilding contract to yards outwith these islands when we have the skills, talent and infra- structure to deliver right here?

[The Prime Minister]

What we are doing through our national shipbuilding strategy is focusing on giving the Royal Navy the ships it needs, while increasing economic growth across the country and investing in a more skilled workforce. We are encouraging a more competitive industry in shipbuilding and growing jobs across the country. The hon. Gentleman may have been referring to the future support ships for the Royal Fleet Auxiliary that are being procured through international competition. Three ships will be built in the fleet solid support programme. They will be subject to international competition to secure the best possible value for money for the UK taxpayer. Through our national shipbuilding strategy, we are ensuring that we develop that shipbuilding capability in the UK, so that we can encourage all UK shipyards with the necessary skills and expertise to continue to engage in that programme.